Waterproof sole.



PATENTED JAN. 9, 1906.

J. N. MOULTON.

WATERPROOF SOLE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 18, 1904.

Inveniam Likes 1V. Mbuliwn.

UNITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES N. MOULTON, OF-PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO JOHN R.REYNOLDS, OF HARTFORD. CONNECTICUT.

WATERPROOF SOLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

. Patented Jan. 9, 1906.

Application filed May 18, 1904. Serial No. 203,515.

To aZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES N. lNIoUL'roN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State ofPennsylvania, have invented an 1mprovement in \Vaterproof Soles, ofwhich the following description, in connection'with the accompanyingdrawings, is a specification,

I rious kinds.

like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to certain improvements in waterproof shoes.

\Vaterproof shoes as now usually constructed are made by inter-posing asheet of cork between the outer and the inner soles, and when the shoeis of the character known as the welt-shoe there is located in thecavity formed by the welt a filler of suitable material, usually groundcork. Shoes of this character are cumbersome in appearance and arefurther open to the objection that they are not durable, for the reasonthat the cork sole is not flexible or pliable, and therefore is liableto crack or break when the shoe is worn, this cracking or breaking ofcourse destroying to a greater or. less extent the waterproofcharacteristics of the cork. Protectors of various kinds have beenproposed as substitutes for cork, these protectors usually consisting ofsheets of composite material of va- These composite sheet-protectorshave, because of their initial cost or because of their unsuitabilityfor the purpose for which it was proposed to use them, provedimpracticable and have not gone into general use, there being at thistime on the market substantially no waterproof shoeexcept the cork-soleshoe above referred to.

This invention has for its object to produce a waterproof protector forshoe-soles which shall be simple and inexpensive, which shall bereliable in its waterproof qualities, and can be added to the shoewithout changing its appearance.

\Vith this and other objects in view the invention consists in a certainconstruction which will be hereinafter fully described and then morespecifically pointed out. I

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View of the under side ofa shoe embodying the invention, the parts being turned back in order todisclose the internal construction. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal verticalsection on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. line 3 8 of Fig. 2.

In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated in thedrawings, (Z indicates the inner sole, and g the upper, of a welt-shoe,the welt being marked h,said parts being united by a line of stitches inthe usual manner. The outer sole of the shoe is marked (6. According tothe invention, there is located between the inner sole and the outersole a waterproof protector. While the component parts of this protectormay be varied, it will include a sheet of waterproof material, such asrubber, which forms the waterproof element of the protector, thiswaterproof material being combined with other material or materials, andthe structure being made in such a way as to provide a body portion andan edge portion. The body portion is of proper size and shape to fillthe cavity which in welted shoes and boots, to which this invention isespecially applicable, is formed by attaching the welt to the upper andinner sole, and the edge portion isthin and flexible or pliable, so thatit may overlie the seam by which the welt, upper, and inner sole aresecured together. In order that the body portion may thus act as afiller, there is attached to the waterproof element a fillersection,which in the best constructions consists of a woven fabricsuch, forinstance, as duck or canvas-this material being cheap, being readilyattached to the sheet which forms the waterproof element, and havingsufficient thickness to enable it to effect the desired function. In theparticular construction illustrated the waterproof element consists ofasheet'of rubber and is marked 0, and on this sheet there is superposedafiller-piece of duck or canvas, (marked 0,) this piece being Fig. 3 isa section on the of such a size, as has been indicated, to be containedwithin the cavity which exists between the inner sole and outer sole,this cav ity being bounded by the inner edge of the welt. The edge ofthe rubber sheet 5 extends beyond the edge of the piece of canvas orduck and is formed toprovide the thin, flexible, or pliable edge beforereferred to, which overlies the seam by which the welt, upper, and innersole are secured together, this edge being relatively thin as comparedwith the thickness of the composite body portion of the protector. Theterm flexible as herein used is to be understood to mean that thematerial of which the edge is composed has the capacity of bendingwithout breaking or cracking, as, with an edge of such mate rial, theconstant flexing of the shoe-sole in wearing will not break or cracksaid edge. and thus destroy its waterproofing capacity. While this edgeoverlies the seam in the manner before described and is thus locatedbetween the welt and the outer sole, in the best constructions it willnot extend out to the edges of the welt and sole. Because of thethinness of this protector edge it can be incorporated into a shoewithout changing the appearence thereof, so that the shoe is notrendered bulky or unsightly in appearance by reason of the existence ofthis waterproof protector therein. The protector will, further, in thebest constructions be provided with a reinforcing-sheet, which consistsof a backing-sheet of thin fabricsuch, for instance, as muslin,(marked bon the drawings) which backing reinforces the protector against thestress upon the sole incident to use.

The protector may be produced in a variety of ways. A convenient Way ofmanufacturing it, however, is to form sheets of material consisting ofthe canvas, the rubber, and the muslin hereinbefore described, fromwhich blanks for the protectors may be cut with suitable dies. Theseblanks may afterward be skived to remove the canvas from the rubberaround the edge of the protector, the backing I) when it is employedmaterially assisting in the s'kiving operation.

It will be readily understood that the protector described will form anabsolutely waterproof shoe. It is well known that the chief source ofleaks in shoes is due to the fact that the water enters between thesoles and filters into the shoe along the seam-line which connects theinner sole and upper. The protector described effectually prevents thewater from entering at this point and further prevents dampness frompenetrating into the shoe through the bottom of the sole. The protectorfurther forms a filler for the space existing in welted shoes betweenthe inner and outer soles, this rendering the use of any additionalfiller unnecessary. While the specific construction hereinbeforedescribed forms a specific means for carrying the invention into effect,it is to be understood that various changes and modifications of thisconstruction may be made without departing from the invention. Theinvention is not, therefore, to be limited to the specific constructionhereinbefore set forth.

WVhat is claimed is 1. A waterproof protector and filler for weltedshoes to be interposed between the inner and outer soles thereof, saidprotector including a body portion comprising a sheet of waterproofmaterial and a filler-section attached thereto, and a relatively thinflexible a size to be contained within the cavity existing between theinner and outer soles and bounded by the edge of the welt and forming inconnection with the rubber and the reinforcing-sheet a body portion, therubber extending beyond the body portion and forming a thin flexibleedge to overlie the seam by which the welt is secured to the upper andinner soles.

3. A waterproof protector and filler for welted shoes to be interposedbetween the inner and outer soles thereof, comprising a sheet of rubber,a filler-section secured to the sheet of rubber, said section being of asize to be contained within the cavity existing between the inner andouter soles, and a reinforcingsheet on the side of the rubber sheetopposite to that on which the filler-section is mounted, thefiller-section, rubber and reinforcing-sheet forming a body portion andthe rubber and reinforcing-sheet extending beyond the body portion andforming a relatively thin flexible edge to overlie the seam by which thewelt, upper and inner soles are secured together.

4:. A shoe comprising an upper, an inner sole and a welt stitchedtogether, an outer sole,

and a waterproof protector or filler interposed between the inner andouter soles, said protector including a body portion comprising a sheetof waterproof material and a filler-section and a relatively thinflexible waterproof edge, the thicker body portion serving as a fillerfor the cavity between the soles, and the thin flexible waterproof edgeserving to overlie the seam by which the welt, upper and inner sole aresecured together.

5. A shoe comprising an upper, an inner sole and a welt stitchedtogether, an outer sole, a waterproof protector and filler interposedbetween the inner and outer soles, said protector comprising a sheet ofrubber, a reinforcing-sheet and a filler-section, the filler-section'being contained within the cavity existing between the inner and outersoles and bounded by the edge of the welt, and forming in connectionwith the rubber sheet and the reinforcing-sheet a body portion, therubber extending beyond the body portion and forming a relatively thinflexible edge which overlies the seam by which the Welt is secured tothe upper and inner sole.

6. A shoe comprising an upper, an inner sole and a welt stitchedtogether, an outer sole, a waterproof protector and filler interposedbetween the inner and outer soles, said protector comprising a sheet ofrubber, a filler- I0 ing a relatively thin flexible edge which overliesthe seam by which the welt, upper and inner sole are secured together.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing Witnesses.

JAMES N. MOULTON.

WVitnesses:

F. P. REYNOLDS, L. Z; POTTER.

